As South African consumers clamber over themselves to get into compact crossovers and micro-SUVs, manufacturers are pushing hard to bring in offerings that tick all the right boxes. Typically, they need to be affordable, somewhat practical, offer a decent amount of safety, and cost next to nothing to run. Vehicles like the Nissan Magnite and Renault Kiger are showing that this form of transportation is exceptionally popular. Now Hyundai has joined the party with their new Exter.
Related: Hyundai Exter (2024) First Drive Review
The Indian-sourced Exter enters the market at a great time and at a price. The same 1.2-litre engine powers all models and offers a choice of three trims and two gearboxes (not all gearboxes are available in all trims, though). Let's look at three things you need to know about the Hyundai Exter.
1. Compact, but spacious
The Exter measures under 4 meters long, at 3 815 mm. It will easily fit in your garage, even if you live in a complex with smaller-than-standard garages. It's only 1 710 mm wide and stands 1 631 mm tall. This makes parking easy and a cinch on the road. This makes the Exter comparable to the Suzuki Ignis, Renault Kiger, and Nissan Magnite.
But you lose out on space! The boot is 290 litres and can grow to 1 275 litres when the rear seats are folded forward. Passenger space is also fairly generous, especially for a vehicle of this compact nature.
2. Light on fuel
The compact 1.2-litre, 4-cylinder petrol engine won't be attending any AA meetings. There's no drinking problem here. Hyundai claims that you can expect a combined cycle fuel consumption figure of 5.7 L/100km from the manual versions and 5.9 L/100km from the automatic versions.
When Ané sampled the Exter at its launch, she was able to return figures of 6.3 L/100km in the manual version without even trying.
3. Affordable
Pricing for the Exter starts from as little as R269 900 for the 1.2 Premium trim with a manual gearbox. This one may have to do without alloy wheels, but you still get great tech and convenience for the price. The 1.2 Premium will cost R4 941 monthly in instalments using a standard finance model.
The most expensive Exter is the 1.2 Elite, which costs R334 900. Using a standard model, this translates to a monthly repayment of R6 130. You can calculate your repayments by clicking on this link for our finance calculator.
